Summary:In Hand of Fate, players collect equipment, items, artifacts and enemies as in-game collectible cards in a card based RPG; then play their deck, bringing to video game life a beautiful 3D world in which gamers make difficult decisions. Sometimes their choices have unexpected consequencesIn Hand of Fate, players collect equipment, items, artifacts and enemies as in-game collectible cards in a card based RPG; then play their deck, bringing to video game life a beautiful 3D world in which gamers make difficult decisions. Sometimes their choices have unexpected consequences and players must crush their foes utilizing a third person action-adventure combat system. The more bosses a player defeats, the more cards they obtain.…Expand

I kept wondering whether the developer first came up with a brawler and then added the whole card game dressing to avoid expanding the arcade component or was it the other way around. Whatever the case may be the game is unique, I’ll give it that, but it doesn’t mean it’s good. [05/2015, p.66]

Other one player games I would rate 10 include the original Doom and Skyrim.

So I dont give this score lightly.
Hand Of Fate, doesOther one player games I would rate 10 include the original Doom and Skyrim.

So I dont give this score lightly.

Hand Of Fate, does require quite a few plays through before you can really exploit the many layers this game has.

But once you know whats going on, this is a very thought provoking experience which really got my imagination going.

I had a moment while token hunting where I just walked past starving children because I had other plans for my whole sackload of food.

Sounds horrible, buts its just a pretend card in a video game.
The children arent real and yet, there is the games power.
You are forced to make choices, to juggle your resources and risk all, for often the smallest gain.

Its hard.
And you are meant to die.
And yet you come back, again and again.

The more you win.
The harder it gets!

Dont expect a cake walk.
This is a fight.
Both using strategy,
And your reflexes when the game goes into 3rd person battle mode.

Coming from a huge Diablo fan, this game is fantastic! The game play is very well balanced and very polished, you have to remember that thisComing from a huge Diablo fan, this game is fantastic! The game play is very well balanced and very polished, you have to remember that this game revolves around risk and luck. It's not 100% reliant on either of the two, you set the risk/reward ratio when you set your deck up. You shape your adventure. For example: if you want a higher chance to find a Frost Blade Sword add 3 Frost Blade cards into your deck.

Graphics: 10/10
- Very well done considering this was made with the Unity Engine!
- Framerates are better than the console versions

Gameplay: 10/10
- Original and Unique

Story: 9/10
- The dealer is your best friend and worst enemy, you never really know.

Price: $20USD - Very fairly priced - this game almost feels like a AAA game.

This game is already amazingly fun to play and I would have no issue paying 5-10 dollars for a decently sized expansion DLC.

To all you Diablo fans and dungeon hunters - this game is a must! The card game aspect may seem boring but you will forget you're playing a card game.…Expand

This is a game that interconnects several different game genres and combines them in a very successful and innovative way. The core premiseThis is a game that interconnects several different game genres and combines them in a very successful and innovative way. The core premise of the game is a RPG and CCG rolled up into one. The RPG aspect stems from gaining abilities and equipment as you play and explore the card dungeon. Each move/step you make on the board consumes one unit of food and restores a bit of health. Without food, you lose health as you move each space. The equipment you earn as you play upgrades your damage, increases your defense with armor, or unlocks abilities such as gold, food, or healing bonuses in somewhat typical RPG fashion. At the end of each floor of the dungeon is either a boss, or a travel card that takes you to the next level and a fresh floor to traverse.

This is where the CCG aspect takes over. The dungeon floor is made up of individual cards from an event deck that you build, all placed face down. No microtransactions here, as you advance through the various levels, you earn and collect tokens during events and boss fights which unlock new cards for you to use. If you are not the deck building type, you can also select to have the computer automatically assemble the equipment and event decks that you need for each dungeon/boss run.

As for the gameplay, every move you make with your figure from one card to the next flips the card face up and triggers an event, either combat or non-combat. The non-combat events can range from a multiple choice event with a "four card monte" mini game that decides if you pass or fail (sometimes epically), or travelers like merchants and healers where you can use earned gold to buy items from your equipment deck, or more food if needed. Some of these events can be skipped if you don't feel like risking health, food, or gold for whatever reward may be in store.

The combat events are the most straight-forward, and unfortunately where most of the faults lie. Combat works very similar to the most recent Batman series of games, with green lines indicating an attacker can be countered by pushing "Q", or red lines indicating the attack can't be countered and should be dodged by using the Space Bar to roll. You also throw in ranged attackers as the game progresses with attacks that can be reflected or dodged. The problem is that there isn't nearly the level of camera control and attack precision that you find in the Arkham series, you often find yourself rolling in the wrong direction and/or swinging at air. With multiple ranged enemies, this can sometimes make the combat feel more frantic and frustrating.

Your equipment also plays a roll in how combat works: no shield, no counter. This makes the event deck building both a critical and fun piece as it sprinkles in the dynamic aspect of a rouge-like game, but does allow you to control more of the results as opposed to being completely random. Before you think you can min/max your event deck to an easy victory though, the masked man across the table (Think D&D Dungeon Master and Card Dealer) throws in some of his own cards to keep things interesting.

Overall a very fun game with a good amount of replay value, slightly hampered by a less than stellar combat experience. Combat flaws aside, I highly recommend picking up a copy of this RPG/CCG/Action Brawler/Rogue-like mashup game.

Hand of Fate is a lot of fun both in campaign and endless modes. Although it suffers a bit from hard reliance on randomness just like mostHand of Fate is a lot of fun both in campaign and endless modes. Although it suffers a bit from hard reliance on randomness just like most 'roguelite' games.…Expand

Hmm - this game caught me quite quickly ... but after playing around a little, i felt like its weaknesses at least matched its strengths.Hmm - this game caught me quite quickly ... but after playing around a little, i felt like its weaknesses at least matched its strengths.

At its core - the game is a game of choices. Choose your path, choose your events etc. .

However - it is the choices that i have a problem with. Many of the choices are resolved by blindly picking one card out of a shuffled stack of 4 - which is fine - in a way... but the game pretends that there is kind of a choice to start with. Some game simulate the shuffling of cards so that a very quick eye actually has a chance tracking the correct card. Hand of Fate however does not give you that chance - so picking a card manually is rather random and henceforth redundant.

The brawler part - the combat - is Batman Arkham style and quite well done ... but very simplified. That makes it short and fun at first - but does not offer much variety. The enemy AI is about on mmorpg levels ( meaning it is pathetic if you can call it AI at all ), the combat arenas - while visually varied enough - do not offer much in terms of making use of the environment ( with the exception of traps .. but there are no bottlenecks or other terrain features to really use )
It would have been very beneficial for the combat to allow for more tactics and play styles ( like ranged, sneaked or melee )

Then there are the trap dungeons which require the player to pass a dungeon of traps of increasingly higher difficulty - which is fun but turns more and more into a chore.

On the bright side however - the game has a very good UI with its card style, great voice acting and overall - a very good design.
I would describe it as a "jack of all traits, master of none" as it tries so many things - and actually does them fairly well.... .

But is it worth the money / trying it out? - yes ... certainly... it is enjoyable and appeals to many players. It showcases very well how a "tabletop" game makes use of the capabilities of a PC.…Expand

Hand of Fate has some minor issues, but it's a unique experience that ties in a few different game styles. Random generation gives it someHand of Fate has some minor issues, but it's a unique experience that ties in a few different game styles. Random generation gives it some legs, and it looks like they're putting a lot of work into the DLC too.…Expand